Electric power is generally transmitted from generation plants to end users (residential, commercial, and industrial (C&I), etc.) via a transmission grid consisting of a network of power stations, transmission circuits, and substations interconnected by powerlines. Once at the end users, electricity can be used as energy to power any number of devices. Controlling peak energy demand/consumption is beneficial to both utilities and to consumers. For instance, electrical utility companies design their systems, including generation, transmission, and distribution, to account for peak energy demand, often resulting in under-utilized systems for a vast majority of time.
In addition, the electrical power rate of commercial and industrial (C&I) consumers generally depends on the peak electrical power they consume. In general, by reducing peak demand, customers may reduce their overall electrical bill. To this end many C&I consumers install energy controllers to coordinate the energy consumption of their various electrical systems (e.g., heaters and air conditioners) with the goal of reducing their peak energy consumption. For example, C&I facility managers may configure a policy for controlling the energy consumption of their facility resulting in a flatter energy consumption curve. This optimization of energy consumption, however, is performed by each company independently. That is, energy consumption profiles may be considered confidential, and may reveal information about operations which companies are not willing to share with each other.